--- title: "NASA Planning Another Test Flight by Boeing’s Starliner" description: "Despite a disastrous test launch that stranded two astronauts on board the ISS, Boeing hasn't given up on its Starliner just yet." date: "2025-03-25" modified: "2025-03-25" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/nasa-planning-another-test-flight-boeing-starliner" categories: - "Boeing" - "Future Society" - "Space" tags: - "boeing" - "NASA" - "starliner" --- # NASA Planning Another Test Flight by Boeing’s Starliner ![Despite a disastrous test launch that stranded two astronauts on board the ISS, Boeing hasn't given up on its Starliner just yet.]() *\Image: NASA\* Despite a disastrous test launch that stranded two astronauts on board the International Space Station and caused it immense public embarrassment, Boeing hasn't given up on its Starliner spacecraft just yet. As [*SpaceNews* reports](), NASA commercial crew program manager Steve Stich revealed last week that the agency is expecting another test flight with the craft. Whether a crew will be on board this time around remains unclear. "What we’d like to do is that one flight and then get into a crew rotation flight," he said. "So, the next flight up would really test all the changes we’re making to the vehicle, and then the next fight beyond that, we really need to get Boeing into a crew rotation. So, that’s the strategy." Starliner was developed under the same commercial crew program as SpaceX's Crew Dragon capsule, which has completed a dozen successful crewed trips to the ISS over the last six years. Boeing and NASA are hoping to address some of the technical issues that led to NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore [having to watch the capsule return]() uncrewed last summer. Instead, the pair [returned onboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon]() spacecraft earlier this month — a nine-month delay. "The thing that we need to solidify and go test is the prop system in the service module," Stich said. "We need to make sure we can eliminate the helium leaks, eliminate the service module thruster issues that we had on docking." Even if the Starliner were to be launched without a crew, Stich said that the agency still wanted to have "all the systems in place that we could fly a crew with." It's a surprising development, given how much of a disaster Starliner has been for Boeing and NASA alike. The aerospace giant has lost [over $2 billion]() on the project since it began. Roughly a month after the capsule returned empty-handed last year, [rumors started swirling]() that Boeing was looking to sell off its space business entire. Boeing and NASA have remained strikingly tight-lipped since Starliner's return. But according to Stich, Boeing isn't ready to throw in the towel. "Boeing, all the way up to their new CEO, Kelly \[Ortberg\], has been committed to Starliner," he said last week, as quoted by *SpaceNews*. "I see a commitment from Boeing to continue the program." For now, NASA is buying itself some time until it has to decide what to do with Boeing's Starliner. The next scheduled crew rotation mission to the space station will be handled by SpaceX in July. It's still possible the agency may opt for Boeing's spacecraft for the mission after that. But considering last year's performance, NASA and Boeing will have to tread carefully. **More on Starliner:** *[You Will Never Guess What the Stranded Astronauts Got Paid for Their Trouble]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()